October 31, 2009, Darts and Laurels

Laurels — To Pitt County high school teams in the hunt for state championships. The volleyball teams from D.H. Conley and J.H. Rose both advanced to the fourth round of the state playoffs with wins on Thursday. Both will hit their home courts again today with the Rampants taking on Wilmington Hoggard and the Vikings playing an undefeated Triton Hawks team. Best of luck.

Laurels — To Halloween, the annual celebration of ghosts and goblins tonight. For kids, the day will bring costumes and trick-or-treating throughout area neighborhoods in search of candy. The slightly older set will be seen on the streets of downtown for Greenville's annual Halloween festivities. As always, both groups should keep safety in mind while out and about this holiday night.

Laurels — To all of the candidate forums and events that brought municipal candidates before voters in recent weeks. Organizers and participants should both be applauded for their efforts, which help citizens make informed choices at the polls. This is an important election in Pitt County's communities, and an electorate well versed in the candidates and issues at stake is essential to success.

Darts — To the low turnout thus far during the One-Stop No Excuses Early Voting period of this election. Today is the final day that voters can cast a ballot early and when citizens can register and vote in one place. Only registered voters can cast ballots on Tuesday, and all who are eligible should do so. Decisions made by a fraction of the electorate may not reflect the general will, so please vote this year.

Laurels — To changes around the Pitt-Greenville Airport which has improved one of the city's transportation gateways. New paving, curb improvements and fencing has vastly upgraded the look of the entrance, and the next few weeks will see the final planting and landscape changes that will complete the project.

Darts — To a dispute over Greenville's population ranking among North Carolina cities. It was previously confirmed that the city ranked 10th in the state for population, but new state estimates put Jacksonville in that spot. Federal figures keep Greenville ensconced in 10th, however, and the 2010 Census will serve as the final arbiter of the dispute when that count is released in the early part of 2011.

Laurels — To a rare Thursday night home football game for East Carolina University next week. Virginia Tech comes to town only weeks after rising as high as No. 4 in the nation to face a Pirate team that played one of its best games on Tuesday night against Memphis. The sold-out contest will be shown on ESPN for those fans unable to find a much-sought-after ticket to the game.

Compiled by Brian Colligan, editorial page editor of The Daily Reflector. Contact him at 329-9507 or via e-mail at bcolligan@coxnc.com